A life story with a David Bowie and Kate Bush soundtrack? That’s a persuasive starting point for a Soho outing. The Sarah McGuinness Soho run of Grit, Glitter & Gaslight brings music, dark humour and personal revelations to a newly created performance space at Blacks Club, where the show continues until 6 December.
McGuinness has spent years telling stories through songs, film and collaborations with Eddie Izzard. Here, she turns the attention on herself, tracing a path from childhood in Derry to international success, with all the complicated business of family, identity and reinvention along the way.
That’s fertile territory for a cabaret. Who did you become to get where you wanted to go? And what happened to the parts of yourself that didn’t quite fit the plan?
The show moves between memoir, concert and confession. Alongside McGuinness’s original songs, there’s material by Bowie, Bush, Kurt Weill and Kander & Ebb. For audiences who like their storytelling with a soundtrack, that combination offers plenty to get curious about.
Sarah McGuinness Soho: a new chapter at Blacks Club
There’s another story unfolding around the performance itself. Grit, Glitter & Gaslight is the opening production in the new theatre space at Blacks Club, the former members’ club on Dean Street.
Reopened through a collaboration between producer John Gore and McGuinness, the building has undergone a refurbishment designed to preserve its history while making room for live performance. The aim is to give breakthrough artists and emerging talent an intimate home in central Soho.
For those of us who love the area’s smaller stages, a new space for artists to try things and tell their own stories is welcome news. This opening production puts one performer’s experiences at the heart of that ambition.
McGuinness brings a varied creative history with her. She began writing songs at 11, moved to London at 18 and went on to make music for films as well as performing in the city’s bars and clubs.
Her song Mama Can You See Me Now featured in her Emmy-nominated documentary Believe: The Eddie Izzard Story and received a William Orbit remix. She has also worked with Izzard as a director and designer for more than 20 years.
Now, following an Edinburgh Fringe season, she’s bringing that experience into a room where music and memory do the talking. If your ideal theatre trip involves a personal story, a little bite and songs worth leaving the house for, put this one on your Soho list.
Grit, Glitter & Gaslight: The Sarah McGuinness Story runs 6 November to 6 December 2026 at Blacks Club, 67 Dean Street, Soho, London W1D 4QH (nearest Tube: Tottenham Court Road). Find out more at Sarah McGuinness’s official website.
Keep a little room in your calendar: browse the GLL Events Diary for your next London outing.
